High Voltage Lithium-Ion Nano-Cathodes

For over 15 years, lithium-ion technology has played a key role in revolutionizing the portable electronics industry by providing high energy density batteries at affordable prices. This remarkable battery technology is now looking to permeate into other applications, particularly plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV), where the requirements are significantly different. However, the conventional energy-storage cathode materials that are used in a majority of today¿s lithium-ion batteries were optimized for the portable electronics industry. These materials are limited in the amount of capacity or energy that they can provide, which, in turn, limits their charge voltage to approximately 4.2V. This project addresses the need for novel battery cathode materials that can be charged in a stable fashion to voltages of 4.8V or higher, thereby enabling the development of li-ion batteries with high energy density. By making these cathodes in nanomaterial size scales, the materials could be optimized to accept high charge and discharge currents. Phase I will investigate the feasibility of utilizing a proprietary NanoSpray combustion process to develop these nano-engineered cathode materials. Commercial Applications and other Benefits as described by the awardee:The development of large-format (>2.5Ah) lithium-ion batteries would meet the performance requirements of PHEVs. Automobiles powered by batteries containing this component would reduce our dependence on foreign oil while reducing harmful automobile emissions. This high voltage nanocathode-based battery system also would have several attributes that would be desirable in other applications, such as portable electronics and power tools